Getting the jitters: Indices slip nearly 1% on renewed rate hike fears

The market breadth was weak with 1,987 stocks declining and 1,502 advancing on the BSE

India’s benchmark indices fell close to 1 per cent on Thursday as US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s ambiguous remarks and strong US jobs data sparked worries about the likelihood of higher rates.

After posting gains in the previous three sessions, the Sensex declined 542 points, or 0.9 per cent, to close at 59,806, while the Nifty50 index settled at 17,590, down 165 points, or 0.93 per cent.

Overseas investors sold shares worth Rs 562 crore on Thursday, while domestic institutional investors were net buyers to the tune of Rs 42 crore, according to provisional data from the exchanges. In